


A Hanukkah Miracle (No, Not THAT Miracle)

by Amuly



Category: Marvel 616, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Brother-Sister Relationships, F/F, Female Jewish Character, First Dates, First Kiss, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Groping, Hanukkah, Holidays, Jewish Holidays, Making Out, Matchmaking, Meet the Family, Traditions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-16
Updated: 2014-12-16
Packaged: 2018-03-01 18:39:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2783654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Amuly/pseuds/Amuly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Wanda invites Carol over for the first night of Hanukkah. And maybe has an ulterior motive.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Hanukkah Miracle (No, Not THAT Miracle)

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to [codenamezinc ](http://www.codenamezinc.tumblr.com)for being my resident Judaism expert! Any mistakes about Judaism are because I forgot to ask her about something, I'm sure :} Feel free to correct me if I got something wrong!

Wanda fiddled with her curls, twirling them around and around and around her fingers again. When she realized she was doing it she put forth a conscious effort behind stop, dropping her hand and spreading her fingers wide as she took a steadying breath.  
  
"I was just wondering if you wanted to come to dinner tonight? For Hanukkah."  
  
Carol blinked. "Oh, for Hanukkah?"  
  
Wanda noted, smiling a little breathlessly. Carol got the impression that this was something more important than just a dinner. Like being invited over for Christmas with the family. Except Wanda's only family--the only family she's be sharing Hanukkah with, at least--was her brother.  
  
"Is Pietro okay with this?" Carol asked.  
  
A slight flush dusted Wanda's cheeks. "It was actually his idea that I invite you," she admitted.  
  
Carol raised an incredulous eyebrow. "Pietro? Your brother, Pietro? He wanted me there?"  
  
Wanda bit her lip, hand creeping back up to twist in her curls. "For me. Not for himself."  
  
Carol snorted. "Well I wasn't entertaining any delusions about _that_." Then she hesitated, suddenly more unsure. "But, really? Pietro said to invite me?"

Wanda's olive skin darkened more as she looked away. "He just. I was putting up the decorations, you know, finding the menorah, went out and bought the candles and some groceries, and I guess I seemed a little... down."

Carol's stomach twisted itself uncomfortably. Wanda was her friend. Just her friend. And Pietro had suggested Wanda invited her  _friend_ over for a little dinner. It wasn't a big deal. It was what friends did.  _Friends_.

Carol figured if she repeated it to herself enough times she'd actually believe it, eventually. 

"I'd love to come," Carol told her. Hesitating just half a second, Carol reached forward and pressed her fingertips to Wanda's forearm, steadying her. Wanda breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, lighting up the whole room. Wanda's smiles could do that, to Carol's eyes.

"Great! That's great. Dinner's after the menorah, which we light at sundown."

Carol squinted. "Uh, which is... what time...?"

Wanda laughed. "Sorry. A little after five."

"So be there at five?"

Wanda smiled softly at Carol, while Carol tried to slow her heartbeat. Kree-enhanced biology, sure. Didn't help keep her heart rate in check when she was around Wanda. "Five is perfect."

"Should I bring something? Should I wear something? I don't exactly know my way around Jewish traditions..."

Wanda shook her head. "Hanukkah's very casual: don't worry about dressing for dinner or anything. It's not  _seder_. "

Carol hesitated, eyes narrowing as she thought. "Um..."

Wanda sighed. "The last supper."

Carol's eyes widened with recollection. "Oh!  _Right_. I knew that. At some point." That wasn't a lie--now that Wanda had said it, Carol knew she had heard that somewhere before. Probably Sunday school she only paid half attention to. 

Wanda stepped closer, hand coming to rest on Carol's arm. Carol fought back a shiver as she looked into Wanda's eyes and kept her smile steady. Friends touched. Just look at Steve and Tony (no, wait: bad example.  _Terrible_ example). 

"Just bring yourself," Wanda said, smile soft. "That's all I need."

She leaned in and pressed a kiss to Carol's cheek, which Carol belatedly returned with a little air-smack. She kept her hands tight by her sides until Wanda pulled away, scared that anything she did now would be a step over the line. Friends kissed. Especially girl-friends (not  _girlfriends_ ). Hell, Jan kissed most the team on the lips any chance she got. And Wanda was touchy like that.

Carol breathed easier as Wanda stepped away, eyes still smiling at her. Carol melted a little bit under the warmth in those eyes.

"Sure. Okay."

Wanda turned to leave, and Carol found herself staring breathlessly after her. When Wanda was well out of sight, a terrible thought snapped Carol out of her trance. 

Shit. What the hell was she going to wear?

* * *

Four dresses and five pairs of slacks lay strewn around Carol's bed, probably magnetically attracting cat hair as they sat there. Carol growled and dipped her head further into her closet, trying to decide...

Wanda had said not to dress for it, but of course Carol was going to dress for Hanukkah dinner. She was being invited into Wanda's home to celebrate a special holiday with her--even if it wasn't the highest of holy nights. She had to dress up a  _little_ bit. Jeans and her Air Force t-shirt wouldn't cut it. 

But all her dresses just seemed so... dressy. Like she was trying too hard. And her slacks made her look too butch, maybe. At least, so it worked in her head. Skirts were out because skirts were Wanda's  _thing_ : Carol would bet good money Wanda would be in a long, voluminous skirt tonight. But what did that leave Carol to wear? Carol glared at her closet, daring it to come up with  _something_. Her bed creaked as Chewie threw his sizable bulk onto it before proceeding to walk across all her clean clothes. Carol sighed and rubbed at her temples.

In the end, she decided on her nicest pair of dark-blue jeans and a red silky blouse. Definitely not trying too hard, but still cute. Carol turned in her mirror one last time, checking herself out. And she  _was_ of the opinion that her ass looked best in jeans, anyway. Grabbing her coat and purse, Carol hurried out of the house at four. She had one errand to run before she went over to Wanda's.

Turns out the errand took a lot longer than she had thought. Really, she should have anticipated this: a Kosher deli an hour before the first night of Hanukkah. In  _New York City_. What exactly had she been expecting, a ghost town? Shoving her way through some perfectly nice-looking but decidedly _in her way_  people, Carol finally made it out of the cramped deli, brown paper bag in hand. The city was dark at this point, though that was partially thanks to the skyscrapers blocking the horizon. Carol glanced at her watch. Five o'clock already. Shit. And she was two boroughs away from Wanda's apartment. With a sigh Carol kicked up her heels and flew, bag clutched close to her chest. Hopefully her own Kree-enhanced body heat would keep it warm against the bitter cold of mid-December air.

As her feet touched down in front of Wanda's door Carol quickly ran a hand through her hair, then whipped up a little Kree-power reordering to make sure it looked more cute, casual dinner-ready than "just-stuck-my-hand-in-an-electrical-socket-in-a-wind-tunnel". One more moment to compose herself, a couple deep breaths, before Carol stuck out one finger and rang the bell. She checked on the bag in her hands as she waited. Still felt warm to the touch. Worst came to worse they could always throw it in the oven for a couple minutes. If they even liked it at all. 

The buzzer went, Carol grabbing at the door and hurrying inside, off the bitter-cold streets. Wanda had a penthouse loft, which Carol took the elevator up to. She could already smell cooking as she stepped off. Carol's stomach growled and she grinned. At least Wanda's cooking was something to distract Carol's stomach from tying herself in knots while she was around Wanda tonight. For a little while, at least.

The door opened almost before Carol knocked on it, Wanda sweeping her up into the world's warmest, softest hug. Carol's heart clenched as she hugged back. Her eyes drifted closed as she settled her face against Wanda's hair, breathing in the spicy smell of her custom-ordered shampoo. "What'd you bring!" Wanda accused as she pulled away, snatching the bag out of Carol's hands.

"The only thing I actually know about Jewish food," Carol admitted, rubbing the back of her head as Wanda peered inside. "Matzo ball soup?"

Wanda beamed as she swooped in for another hug, this time complete with a kiss to the cheek. Carol's stomach twisted. Great, so _not_ hungry enough to avoid turning over itself with unrequited longing. Carol bit back a sigh as she pulled away, smiling tightly. 

"It's just from a deli by my house. I didn't make it or anything."

"It's great, thank you. I told you not to bring anything." Wanda smacked Carol on the arm as she led her further into her apartment.

Carol rubbed her arm good-naturedly--physically, Wanda couldn't harm a hair on Carol's head. Not without bringing her magic into the picture. "You knew I was going to."

Wanda hummed and didn't deny it. She lead Carol to the kitchen, where she set the bag on the counter and started rummaging through cabinets. Carol peered around, hands fiddling with themselves with lack of anything to occupy them. Pots and pans were piled high in the sink, one pan on the stove crackling with frying food. Most everything was already ladled out into serving dishes, though there was still one other pot on the stove bubbling. 

"Can I help?"

Wanda tutted as she poured the soup from its deli container into a nice serving bowl. "You should know better than to ask. Everything's done as it is, just have to take the latkes off the stove, the sufganiyah- oh, they should be done! One moment-" Wanda bustled over to the pot on the stove where she proceeded to pull what looked like fried dough-balls out of the boiling oil with a pair of tongs. She nodded over at Carol. "You can pass me that tray," she told her, nodding at a tray on the far counter that already had a wax sheet lining it. Carol hurriedly picked up the tray and held it out for Wanda, who dropped the doughnut things onto the wax paper. 

"Sufer-gun-yeah?" Carol asked, trying the word.

"Sufganiyah," Wanda corrected her, smiling. "They're just jelly doughnuts, nothing to be afraid of. I usually let them cool during dinner and then let Pietro fill them for dessert." Wanda beamed. "He can't stand cooking because of how long all the actual  _cooking_ parts take, but he's the best help in the world when it comes to prep work."

Carol snorted and glanced around. "Where is he, anyway? I feel like I oughta thank him for inviting me. Kinda."

"Already here," Pietro said, materializing next to them with his customary flair. Carol rolled her eyes. "You're late."

"Yeah, sorry," she turned to Wanda as she explained, "For some reason I figured popping into the Kosher deli an hour before the first night of Hanukkah would be a breeze."

"That was stupid," Pietro told her bluntly. His hand darted out to snatch up one of the suf-gan-i-yahs, only to be smacked away by a pink blast of magic. He winced and shook his hand out, pouting at his sister. Wanda just smiled primly at him as she set another doughnut onto the tray. 

"Is the dinner table set up?" Wanda asked him.

"It will be," he replied. 

She rolled her eyes as she dropped the last of the doughnuts on the tray and gestured for Carol to set it aside. "Why don't you do it now?"

"It'll be done before you sit down," Pietro told her.

"It could be done _nooow_..." Wanda sing-songed.

Carol barely had time to register the annoyed look on Pietro's face before he was gone, then back. "It's set up. Happy now?"

Wanda grinned and stood on her tip-toes to kiss her brother's cheek. Carol resisted the urge to touch her own cheek, where it was still tingling from Wanda's kiss. It was just a familial thing. It was friendly. It didn't mean anything more than that.

"Yes," Wanda told him, smiling. Then she turned to Carol and her smile widened. "We're going to light the menorah now, then we can eat."

"Do you guys say a prayer or something?" Carol asked as she followed them into the living room. The menorah was set on a window ledge, facing out into the street. Or it would be, if the street weren't several dozen stories below them. Carol glanced at the view before settling into the background. This wasn't her tradition and she didn't want to get in the way.

"I do, Pietro doesn't participate," Wanda told Carol, who glanced over at Pietro. He shrugged.

"We weren't raised it and I felt no need for it when we found out our... roots."

Wanda beamed. "I like it. I mean, I didn't at first. Or rather, I didn't like finding out who our father really was. But it's a beautiful faith and if there's one good thing that came from that man, it's this." She nudged Pietro. "And my siblings."

Pietro hummed in annoyance, though Carol thought she saw a smile struggling to break free. "Get on with it," he told her. "Or I'll eat everything before you two can blink."

Turning to Carol, Wanda explained: "I just say the  _brachot_ , three blessings, then light the candles, and that's it. Very simple."

Carol nodded and watched as Wanda spoke the words of the blessings in Hebrew. Carol couldn't understand a word of it, but Pietro seemed like he did. A few lines into the blessings and Pietro leaned over and whispered: "Blessed are You, Lord our G-d, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments and commanded us to kindle the Hanukkah light." He paused as Wanda did. When she started speaking again, he mumbled: "Blessed are You, Lord our G-d, King of the universe, Who performed miracles for our ancestors in those days at this time." Again a pause before Wanda started the last prayer. Pietro translated quietly: "Blessed are You, Lord our G-d, King of the universe, Who has kept us alive, sustained us, and enabled us to reach this season."

Carol shot Pietro a grateful grin as he fell silent. He shrugged and glanced away, almost like he was embarrassed to be caught helping. Wanda turned to them with a smile. "Now I just light he _shamash_ , then the first candle, and then we can eat." 

As Wanda struck a match and lit the middle candle, Carol snapped her fingers. "I know this. It was in some Hanukkah cartoon special or something. The middle candle is the helper candle and it lights the other candles."

Wanda giggled as she lit the first candle with the  _shamash_ , then set it back in its place in the middle. "A-star student."

"We use pluses over here," Carol reminded her. But she was grinning big enough to negate any ill feelings from her correction. 

Wanda waved a hand as she stepped over to Carol. "Whichever. Now come on: dinner time."

Pietro was at the table first, seated as the serving dishes rattled ominously in their new spots on the table. He had something suspicious ball-shaped stuffed into the side of his cheek, which he chewed and swallowed before Wanda could even glance in his direction. Carol shot him a knowing smile, which Pietro actually returned.

"Our prayers sound pretty similar to those," Carol observed as they sat down. Wanda tilted her head at her. 

"Which parts?"

Carol took three latkes for herself as Pietro handed her the bowl, then passed it to Wanda. "The 'king of the universe' part, though usually we call Mary that. Well: Queen of the Universe, you know. That's a big thing for us: 'Mary, Queen of the Universe.'"

"Jews aren't so much with the Mary," Pietro pointed out. Half his plate was already cleared. He seemed to just notice this and he sighed, scrubbing his face. 

"The beginning bits of your prayers sound the same, too," Carol told them. "'Blessed are You, Lord our God'... We have plenty of prayers that start like that. I didn't know you called your God 'Lord', though. I thought that was a Jesus thing."

Pietro snorted. "Christianity did not invent the tradition of calling their G-d 'Lord'."

Carol stuck her tongue out at him. "Well we  _usually_ call  _Jesus_  'Lord', and God 'Father' or 'God' or whatever. So excuse me for thinking the criterion we use to demarcate the parts of our God was the same across the board."

"That's the problem with having three gods," Pietro pointed out, grinning. Carol reached for a matzo ball with her spoon, ready to fling it at him, when a flash of pink enveloped her plate. Glancing down, Carol saw the matzo ball had turned into a flower. She blinked, then looked over at Wanda.

"That was improbable."

Wanda was peering at the flower like she hadn't exactly meant for  _that_ to happen. Still, she smiled: "Improbable  _is_ my specialty."

"Does Polaris observe?" Carol asked, blowing on her soup. She tucked the flower onto the side of her plate.

Wanda shook her head. "Her mom raised her Christian, not sure which one. I don't think she really practices any religion."

"She doesn't," Pietro confirmed. He and Wanda exchanged a glance. Pietro continued: "She holds some sort of faith sentiment, but she doesn't observe any particular religion. Not that we've held extensive discussions about it, but."

Carol bit into her first latke and had to stop, moaning happily. "Oh, Wanda, this is delicious."

Wanda's cheeks darkened and she slouched in her chair, curling herself over her soup bowl. "No, it's just... it's just oil and potatoes, really. It's nothing much." 

Carol cut a notch from the cheese wheel in the center of the table and spread it onto some crackers. "This is my favorite part of holidays: all the food. I'll have to have you over for Christmas one year. I know everyone thinks  _their_ mom's cooking is the best, but seriously: my mom's Brussels sprouts. I know that sounds ridiculous but I'm telling you, she has this recipe for them-" Carol stopped, cheese and cracker stuffed into her cheek, as she realized what she was saying. She used her mouthful of food as an excuse to shut up as she looked away from Wanda, hoping the dim light would cover her blush but knowing it wouldn't. She caught Pietro eyeing her curiously, though he looked away quickly enough.

"I mean, you know. In exchange for you having me over," Carol explained, hoping that would cover for her. Damn it, she couldn't just invite Wanda over for Christmas dinner with the family like they were... 

Carol smiled tightly at Wanda, hoping her embarrassment might cover up her hurt, at the very least. She couldn't just invite Wanda over for Christmas dinner with the family like they were more than friends. Like _they_ were family. 

"You don't have to do that," Wanda told her, smile almost as tight as Carol's felt. Carol's heart dropped. Wanda was trying to turn her down, politely. 

"Open offer," Carol told her with a shrug. It was fine. 

Suddenly Wanda yelped, her chair knocking dangerously to one side. Carol was up in a flash, grabbing her with one hand on Wanda's arm, the other on the chair. Carol's heart starting beating again when Wanda peered up at her through her curls, cautious smile tugging at her lips.

"Okay?" Carol asked. Her heart might have stopped for that split-second when Wanda's chair had tipped, but now it was working double time. 

"Sorry, thanks. My chair just tipped, I don't-" Both women's heads turned around in unison, gazes leveled at the chair where Pietro had been sitting just a second before. When they registered he was gone, Wanda turned, looking for him with a growl. "Pi-"

"Sufganiyot are done!" Pietro called from the kitchen. He stepped out with a basket of doughnuts in one hand the opposite of an innocent smile on his face. He shot a look at his sister as he set them on the table, stealing three for himself between his long fingers. 

"Carol? Do you..."

Carol realized she was still holding onto Wanda's arm. She backed away, smiling as reassuringly as she could. "Sorry, sorry!

"No, I meant-" Wanda shook her head, curls bobbing around her face. "Do you want a sufganiyah? That's what I..." She smiled. "That's what I was going to ask."

"Oh. Sure." Automatically Carol reached out and grabbed the powdered doughnut and bit into it. Strawberry jam filled her mouth and she blinked in surprise. It wasn't bad, she just hadn't been expecting that.

Wanda giggled as Carol retook her seat, munching thoughtfully. "Sorry, I meant to tell you what they were filled with. Which one did you get?"

"Strawberry. Are there other kinds?" Carol asked, eyeing the basket. Not that she didn't  _like_ strawberry, but...

"One third chocolate, one third vanilla pudding, one third strawberry jam," Pietro explained, ticking it off on his fingers. He held up the three he had stolen. "Ratio still applies since I took one of each."

Carol leaned over the table, peering at the doughnuts in the basket. "Oh, well if there's chocolate..." 

"I can find one for you," Wanda told her. With the flick of her wrist, the basket tilted. One doughnut fell out, rolling across the table at Carol. She picked it up, taking a curious bite into it. Chocolate. She grinned at Wanda.

"Lucky," she observed.

"I usually am," Wanda confirmed with a smile. Carol smiled back dreamily, not caring that she probably had powdered sugar and chocolate smeared all across her mouth. 

"Oh right I have that errand," Pietro announced suddenly.

Carol frowned and looked over at him, attention temporarily drawn away from Wanda. "What-" she asked, at the same time Wanda accused: "You don't-"

"Yes I do we talked about this now-" Pietro sped over to Wanda, stopping just long enough to press a kiss to her cheek. "NowdowhatyoupromisedyouwoulddoorI'mnotgoingtospendanothernightwithyouthisweek."

Carol blinked hard, wondering if there was any way Wanda parsed the gibberish that just spilled from Pietro's mouth. Apparently she did, and apparently it was something horrifically embarrassing, because Wanda's face turned a deep shade of scarlet that Carol hadn't seen outside of her costume. She moved to punch Pietro, but he was already out the door, coat rack rattling with one less coat on it. 

"Do I get to find out what that was about or was it a sibling  _thing_?" Carol asked, bemused.

Wanda shook her head, and oh. Shit. She seemed kind of upset. Carol dropped the remaining half of her doughnut to her plate, fretting over what to do, what she might have done wrong. 

"No, it's... It's nothing. Pietro..." Wanda smiled, but it was watery, her eyes sparkling with tears in the cozy light of the apartment. "It's nothing," she repeated, as if it would make it true.

Pushing back from the table, Carol hurried over to Wanda, dropping to her knees next to her. "Hey, hey: what is it? You guys okay?" After a few aborted movements, Carol reached out and took Wanda's hands in hers, rubbing them lightly. "You didn't just get in a fight or something, did you? Because I mean, I know as much as anybody how much brothers can be dicks, especially little brothers..."

Wanda laughed and shook her head, but she was crying. Carol bit her lip. Shit. Something had made Wanda  _cry_. What the hell? If Carol knew what was wrong, she could at least... try and fix it, or punch it, or fix it by punching it, or  _something_. Hands curling around Wanda's, Carol squeezed them in reassurance. 

"It's not that. It's not. He just... Goodness, look at me, I'm sorry. I'm being ridiculous."

"You're not ridiculous," Carol promised her. Heart pounding in her chest, Carol reached up with one hand to wipe a tear from her cheek. Wanda smiled sadly down at her. "What is it?"

"Pietro wanted me to invite you- I've been driving him mad, you know- and he made me _promise_ I'd finally-"

Carol frowned, not understanding in the slightest. "Sorry Wanda, I don't-"

"I told him it would ruin it, that you wouldn't be interested-"

A sharp longing hit Carol so hard the air felt sucked from her longs. She twisted up her lips into a forced smile as she tried: "Is Pietro, uh... Did he want to ask me out? Because he's tolerable enough, but I'm not really-"

But Wanda shook her head, gold earrings tinkling softly as her hair curled through them. "No. I wanted to."

Carol couldn't breathe. But she couldn't believe it. Couldn't let herself, not yet. "You wanted to hook me and Pietro-"

Wanda made a sad, frustrated little noise before behind down and pressing her lips to Carol's, one hand cupping her cheek. Carol froze, hand that was holding Wanda's squeezing tight with shock, muscles locking in some sort of fight-or-flight dilemma.

"I'm sorry," Wanda whispered as she pulled away. "It was just, the holiday, and... I just was so mopey, thinking about you, Pietro should have never-"

Carol cut her off by surging up, returning the kiss she had been too slow to a second ago. Wanda squeaked, the noise swallowed up by Carol's mouth as she opened it, sucking gently at Wanda's lips in entreaty. Wanda whimpered as she opened her mouth to Carol's, letting her tongue slip inside. Carol's muscles went slack, endorphines rushing through her system because she was kissing Wanda she was kissing Wanda  _she was kissing Wanda_...

Carol pulled back reluctantly a minute, two, later. Slowly she opened her eyes, just in time to see Wanda's still closed, lips parted as she waited for more. When Wanda did blink and look at Carol, her face split into the most open, happy expression Carol had seen on her in a long, long time.

"You wanted to?" Carol asked, still in shock.

Wanda nodded vigorously. "For a long time. But now that Pietro isn't working for X-Factor anymore he's been living here for a couple months, and the holidays were making me all mopey because I couldn't spend them with you--not the way I wanted to. I guess I just drove him crazy until... he made me promise."

"I'm buying him eight days of presents," Carol murmured as leaned in for another kiss. Her hand came up to stroke at Wanda's cheek, feeling the soft, heated skin beneath her fingertips. Carol shivered, breathing softly against Wanda's lips before capturing them once more in a kiss. "I can't believe you want this," Carol said.

"I can't believe you do," Wanda replied back. Her lips chased Carol's, pulling her back in for a searing kiss. Carol overbalanced with the intensity of it, catching herself on the table before she fell into Wanda's lap. Both women stared at each for a moment before bursting into nervous giggles. 

"Do you, uh..." Carol glanced over her shoulder, then nodded that direction. "Your couch looks pretty comfy?"

Which is how Carol found herself straddling Wanda's hips, one hand slowly creeping under her shirt as they kissed, and kissed, and kissed.

"I can't believe we waited this long," Carol murmured against Wanda's lips.

Wanda's hands tightened on Carol's waist, fingertips curled around the back tantalizingly close to being indecent. Carol kinda wished Wanda would brave being indecent and slide those hands back a little more. 

"We're here now," Wanda told her. Carol nuzzled her nose under Wanda's jaw, hand creeping just a little further under her shirt. She felt Wanda's stomach jump beneath her hand, but then Wanda's body rolled up against her, encouraging her. Carol let her hand creep higher. 

"Mmmhmm," Carol hummed, teeth grazing Wanda's neck. A soft, stuttering sound escaped Wanda at that, prompting Carol to lick at the spot before doing it again. Wanda moaned a little more this time. Carol's body ached, arousal pooling low inside her and spreading like boiling water. Her left hand brushed against the underwire of Wanda's bra. She stopped, waiting for confirmation. 

She got it when Wanda rolled her hips up against Carol at the same time she dipped her head, mouth seeking hers. Carol groaned into the kiss, biting gently at Wanda's lower lip as her hand slipped under Wanda's bra and squeezed. Wanda moaned, a high "Hah-!" escaping her before Carol covered her lips with her owns again, tongue lapping Wanda's cries away. Wanda's hips rolled up against Carol's again, and Carol shifted down, seam of her jeans rubbing at her. She felt herself clench in anticipation, wanting Wanda's hands on her, in her.

Carol registered the door slamming shut before she heard it click open. She jumped off Wanda, legs and arms tangling until she fell off the couch in a heap. Bending her neck back Carol looked to the door, hair falling every direction. It was shut, and no one was inside the apartment with them. She peered up at Wanda who had her face buried in her hands.

"Sorry!" Wanda called out to no one.

Carol put it together after a second and flushed. "Did Pietro just-"

"We should take this to the bedroom," Wanda told her, all but confirming her suspicions. The tips of Carol's ears felt hot. 

Wanda must have mistaken her embarrassment for reluctance because she quickly backtracked.

"Only if you- I didn't mean it like that. Just that if you, um, wanted... Oh, drat."

Carol laughed as she lifted herself back onto the couch, thighs settling easily on either side of Wanda. She grinned as she peppered Wanda's face with kisses: nose, cheeks, jaw, lips. Beneath her Wanda was soft, and trembling, and pliant. 

"Yes, I would like to move this to the bedroom," Carol reassured her. She pulled back, a little breathless as she looked at the beautiful women beneath her, lips wet and swollen and slightly parted, silently begging for more. "I'd love it, in fact."

They fell over each other in their rush to get off the couch, hands clutching at whatever patch of skin they could grope as they giggled their way to Wanda's bedroom. Carol slammed the door shut, just in case Pietro was waiting for a moment he could slip back into his own bedroom. Then she grabbed Wanda, lifted her over her shoulder as Wanda shrieked in delight. Carol tossed her down to the bed where Wanda bounced twice before settling into the mattress. Carol breathed hard, and not with exertion, as she took in the sight of Wanda spread out before her.

Wanda crooked one finger at her and Carol went, falling down to the bed with Wanda. Her last semi-rational thought was that she hoped Pietro would blow out the Hanukkah candles before they started a fire. Talk about killing the mood.

* * *

The next night, Wanda insisted Carol come back and light the second candle with her. Pietro was there again--it was his apartment too, after all. After dinner Wanda made Pietro stay and join them as she introduced Carol to another Hanukkah tradition.

"I know this," Carol said as she plucked up the dreidel with thumb and forefinger. She peered at the cryptic writing on the sides. "Well. I don't know what each symbol is. But you play for the chocolates coins, right? And there's some rules, like double your coins, lose all your coins, gain one, lose one..."

Wanda laughed as she stole the dreidel back from Carol. "Close enough. But you have to sing the song, first."

Carol squinted at Wanda. Then she looked to Pietro, since he seemed less likely to lie. He was too busy sighing and rubbing his face to help out, though. "What song?" Carol finally asked, eyes flickering back to Wanda.

Wanda beamed as she spun the little top on the ground, then started singing: "Dreidel dreidel dreidel, I made you out of clay-"

"That  _song_ ," Pietro groaned. 

"-and when it's dry and ready, oh dreidel we will play."

"You know that's a children's song, don't you? For children?" Pietro asked his sister.

Wanda grinned as her dreidel fell onto its side, then pouted as she read the letter. She tossed one of her coins into the center.

"I know, but we didn't get to play this as children, now did we?"

"Do I have to sing the song?" Carol asked as she took the dreidel from Wanda. 

"Yes!"

" _No_."

Carol looked between the twins, before sighing and saying, with completely flat affect: "Dreidel dreidel dreidle, I made you out of clay-"

Wanda cheered as Carol spun the top, Pietro groaning and falling backwards to stare mournfully at the ceiling. When the top stopped Carol pointed at it. "Okay, what's it mean?"

Wanda peered at it before beaming. " _Hei_. Half. But the pot is just my coin, so you get the whole thing." 

Carol whooped, taking the single coin out of the center. "Alright, looks like the gentile pulls ahead." She tossed the dreidel at Pietro's prone form, who of course caught it anyways. "Your turn."

Pietro spun the top, staring down both women as he resolutely said, and sang, nothing. "Shin," he read for Carol's benefit as he tossed a coin into the middle. "Put in," he told her.

"I thought you weren't Jewish," Carol asked Pietro as he passed the dreidel off to his sister. "Or, you know: not religiously Jewish. How do you know all this," Carol waved at the dreidel, "and the prayers yesterday?"

Pietro shrugged as his sister spun the dreidel and hummed under her breath. "I still learned Hebrew." 

"Shin, shin put one in," Wanda sadly intoned as she tossed a coin into the pot. She passed the dreidel to Carol.

"But why? If you don't ever plan on practicing."

Pietro shrugged. "It didn't take long. And Wanda needed help learning for her bat mitzvah."

"Pietro picks up languages like," Wanda snapped her fingers. "It's awful."

Carol spun the top, then peered down at it. "What's that one?"

"Nun," Pietro told her as he leaned forward to pluck the dreidel from the floor. "It means nothing. You don't do anything. And I can process thousands of words per minute faster than almost anyone else on earth. Learning languages like that is simple."

"How many languages can you speak?" Carol asked. Even though she had been teammates with Pietro, she didn't know all of the side-effects of his abilities, like how they apparently made him a polyglot.

"Eight. Ish." He spun the top, then nodded at it. " _Gimel_. That's all." He scooped the gelt out of the pot before passing the dreidel to his sister.

"That's handy," Carol observed. She leaned back, comfortable in the warmth and friendliness of the apartment. "You don't use that very much, though."

"Other people speak more languages than me. On X-Factor we had Doug, who can speak every language. One of the children Avengers, David, can speak every language he's absorbed. Not to mention telepaths, Romanoff, Thor has All-Speak..." he ticked the people off on his fingers before dropping his hand and shrugging. "It comes in handy when I'm on my own. But my skills with languages are limited compared to some other's."

They played until Carol was left with a sizable pile of chocolate and wondering how subtly Wanda's powers could be controlled, because she hadn't  _seen_ any flickers of hex magic, but the outcome was much too fortuitous in Carol's favor for it to be entirely thanks to chance. Wanda put on a Hanukkah movie and settled on the couch. Carol sat down next to her, hands carefully to herself as she watched Pietro out of the corner of her eye. It took approximately fifteen seconds of this before Wanda was grabbing at Carol, pulling her half against her side and half in her lap. Carol blushed and kept her eyes on the TV. She wasn't  _against_ PDAs, and this hardly be considered one since they were in Wanda's _home_ , but...

Pietro snorted and stalked toward the kitchen. But as he crossed the back of the couch, one hand shot out and ruffled Carol's hair. He was already in the kitchen by the time Carol twitched and raised a hand, an aborted "Hey-!" on her lips. Pietro's laughter chimmed out from the other room as Carol settled back against Wanda.

"That means he likes you," Wanda told Carol. She pressed a kiss to Carol's temple before facing back to the TV.

Carol glanced towards the kitchen, but a blur of movement and Pietro was already back, leftover sufganiyot in hand. The armchair he sat in rocked gently as he munched on his desserts, eyes fixed on the TV. Carol watched him for a moment, mouth open like she might say something, though she wasn't sure what. Finally she just shook her head and smiled. 

Apparently able to sense her look, Pietro glanced over at Carol's, meeting her eyes. He raised one eyebrow at her, which she promptly returned with a single raised eyebrow of her own. Pietro nodded at his sister, then narrowed his eyes, a clear if non-verbal shovel talk passing between them. Carol nodded seriously. 

"I can hear you not talking and you're distracting me," Wanda grumbled. She tugged on Carol's hand until she folded it into her own. Carol grinned and shot one last glance over to Pietro. The man smiled-- _smiled_ \--at Carol before turning his own gaze back to the TV. Carol settled against Wanda, head spinning. Pietro approved of her (when had Pietro ever approved of Wanda's significant others? Ever??) and Wanda was her... her... hers.

Must be the miracle of Hanukkah, Carol thought. Before she bit her lip and wondered if that was vaguely blasphemous. Oh well. It was close enough to Christmas that she could attribute this to a Christmas miracle, too. Or maybe an inter-denominational...

Wanda's hand squeezed at Carol's, and she stopped thinking. The menorah with its two candles glowed steadily in the window. 


End file.
